“Oh, I’m not sure about that,” she said with furrowed eyebrows, “The Alpha King instructed me to -“
“Please,” I said. I could already see Alessia disappearing in the other direction and I didn’t want to lose her. “It’s just a few feet and I’m feeling kind of bloated from that dinner. Not sure the duck agreed with my stomach.”
I’m not sure why I was so hellbent on talking to Alessia, but there was a huge swell of relief upon seeing a familiar face.
She looked like she was still considering it but after a moment, she sighed and nodded. “Please be careful, Your Maj -“
“Thanks!” I was already speed-walking away from her, determined to catch up to Alessia before she vanished from my sight.
I rounded the same corner she had, but she was nowhere to be seen.
Where did she go?
I glanced around but this part of the hallway was empty. I was just about to wander off when I caught sight of a familiar door – it was the same door that led out to the balcony where Alessia and I first met.
How much do you want to bet she’s getting a little fresh air?
I didn’t think too much about striding over to the door and pulling it open. The bitter Canadian cold hit me like a punch to the stomach and I immediately began rubbing my bare arms.
Why did I think it was a good idea to go outside without at least a jacket?
“You look cold,” Alessia’s voice cut through the cold and I turned to face her. She was leaning against the other side of the balcony with a smirk plastered on her face. Her hair was blowing in the chilly breeze and the moonlight illuminated the long scar on her face.
Despite only wearing a leather jacket, she didn’t look the least bit cold.
“Here,” she said, and then she shrugged off that same jacket, “Here, take my jacket.”
“Oh, you don’t have to -“
“Please,” she said, smirking at me, “I could never allow my Queen to be cold, could I?”
“I’m not running away. I’m moving on.”
Irvine Welsh
It wasn’t the first time someone had referred to me by that title, but coming from Alessia’s mouth, it made me feel like even more of an imposter. It didn’t fit – I knew it, and given the amused expression on Alessia’s face, she knew it too.
“We could just go inside and talk, you know,” I said, taking her jacket, “That way, nob*dy has to stand out here with no jacket.” Although it still couldn’t compare to the Canadian cold, the jacket definitely helped me tolerate the freezing night.
Alessia rolled her eyes. “Please, there are guards everywhere,” she said, “You want the entire castle to hear our conversation?”
“Definitely not.”
“That’s what I thought,” she said, and then she gave me a teasing smile, “So, your Queen now, huh?”
“I’m surprised you heard,” I told her, “I didn’t see you at the meeting earlier.”
It was weird to think the meeting had only been a handful of hours ago it felt more like months.
“Oh, yeah,” she shrugged, “I didn’t feel like going. A room full of territorial Alphas fighting over a pack dispute? No thanks. But the castle has been in an uproar given all the drama, I kinda wish I wouldn’t have missed it.”
“By drama,” I said dryly, “You mean Griffin recognizing me as his mate and then killing his father in the span of five minutes? I don’t know if I’d classify that as drama.”
I guess so,” she chuckled, “So, how does it feel?”
“How does what feel?” I asked.
‘
“Being Queen, being the mate of the Alpha King – whatever you want to call it. Had I known you were going to be such a big deal when we talked last night, I would’ve k*ssed your a*s more.”
I couldn’t stop the laugh from bubbling up. Although I didn’t know Alessia well at all, something about her was comforting. She wasn’t someone to be trifled with the scar on her face proved that but she wasn’t fake either. She wasn’t afraid to tell me the truth, and in turn, it made me feel like I could be honest with her.
“You want the truth?” I asked her, leaning against the balcony.
She nodded.
“I can’t tell what’s coming from me and what’s coming from this stupid mate bond,” I confessed, “When Griffin recognized me as his mate, I was horrified. I know mates are supposed to be a good thing, and for werewolves, I’m sure they are. But I had a life, things I wanted to do…like go to college.”
“And if you’re chained to the King for the rest of your life,” she said, “You never will.”
“Pretty much,” I said, “And every part of me wishes I could just completely hate him…but I can’t. This mate bond or whatever it is it’s like my feelings only grow the more I’m around him.”
“Oh, that’s the mate bond for you,” Alessia said, “Not that I would know from firsthand experience or anything, but that’s usually how those things go. I imagine it’s more subdued for you since you’re human, but it sounds like you’re still feeling it.”
“I’m worried,” I said, “I’m worried that if I spend too much time around him, I’m going to forget about everything else going to college, seeing my family, doing normal human things. I’m worried I’m going to lose myself. I’ve seen mated couples before. They pretty much revolve around each other and that’s it. But it’s not like I can do anything to stop it, I’m trapped here.”
“Well, I wouldn’t say you were trapped,” she said with that same teasing smile, “I mean, by yourself sure. You don’t stand a chance of getting away from the King or his pack on your own. This place might be a castle but it’s an isolated fortress too. Unless you know how to navigate all that forest which you don’t, I’m guessing you’re screwed. The only other way you’re getting out of here is if you leave undetected with someone else who’s allowed to leave.”
She spoke as if she was just thinking out loud but it did get me thinking. Alessia was right. I was smart enough to at least realize I couldn’t navigate the forest on my own. I regularly got lost on the way to school, there was no way I’d make it through a thick Canadian forest alone. If I didn’t die of hypothermia first, Griffin or one of his pack members would most likely just find me and bring me back.
My best chance was hitching a ride with someone who was already leaving the castle – someone who wouldn’t immediately find me and report me to Griffin. Someone I could reasonably trust more than a stranger.
Someone like Alessia.
As soon as I thought it, I was turning to Alessia with frantic eyes. “Alessia,” I said, “I know we don’t know each other very well but you could be my ticket out of here. You’re visiting just like everyone else, which means you’ve got to go home to your pack soon I could come with you!”
Alessia looked at me like I’d grown three heads.
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